$500,000 in taxpayer money earmarked to pave private road

One of many posted signs along Raphael Project Road in Golden Meadow warns the public to stay away.

Abby Tabor/Staff

Ben LundinStaff Writer

Published: Wednesday, January 2, 2008 at 11:24 a.m.

Last Modified: Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 11:00 p.m.

GOLDEN MEADOW -- A three-mile stretch of gravel known as Raphael Project Road leads to a pump station, a privately owned 172-foot yacht and almost nothing else.

The public is barred from traveling on the road.

But the Lafourche Parish Council voted in December to spend $500,000 of taxpayer money to pave it.

Councilmen Brent Callais and Daniel Lorraine proposed the improvements. Callais has close ties to Gary Chouest, manager of Galliano Marine Service, which owns the yacht. The company is a sub-unit of maritime giant Edison Chouest Offshore, of which Gary Chouest is president. Callais, whose council term expired Monday, works as a consultant for the New Orleans Hornets, a basketball team partially owned by Chouest.

Callais denies the proposal is intended to help Chouest or any other individual. He said nobody asked for the road to be paved, but he wanted to provide improved access to the pump station.

"Gary Chouest is one landowner of about 200 who owns land back there. There are about 20 camps back there and all kinds of things," he said. "Itís not just going to one manís road."

Several private camps and at least one house dot the levee neighboring the yachtís berth, but Raphael Project Road ends at the private dock and all available accounts and maps indicate it does not continue to the camps.

Local residents are keenly aware of the yachtís location and say they are not permitted to the travel the road they are asked to pay for.

"I donít want my tax money going on a paved road that I canít go on, thatís common sense," said Brian Cheramie, who lives nearly in the shadow of Chouestís yacht. "Especially these people -- these are millionaires. Even if they werenít millionaires, itís a private road and I donít want my money on that road."

ŽPRIVATELY OWNED STREETí

A metal barrier blocks entrance to the road, east of La. 308, and posted signs indicating the land is private property are ample.

About two miles down the road is an ornate black gate adorned with an anchor displaying the yachtís name, "Tranquility."

Callais and Lorraine contend, however, that the road is public.

Lafourche Parish District Attorney Cam Morvant says otherwise.

Last year Callais proposed installing lights on the road, but Morvant responded in a letter dated Jan. 3, 2007, that "based upon the information I have received regarding this matter, it is my understanding that Raphael Project Road is a privately owned street."

The owner of the road and its surrounding pasture is the Louisiana Land and Exploration Company, which granted a right of way for the South Lafourche Levee District, a non-government entity that owns the pump station, provided it maintains the road. A right of way allows an entity to travel on private property.

The agreement, from Dec. 14, 1995, states, "said road is and shall continue to be a private road."

According to state law, government can seize a private road as public without permission of the landowner if parish workers regularly maintain it for at least three years and other criteria are met.

However, Morvant said in his letter to Callais that "according to the parish public-works department, the parish does not maintain the road on a regular basis and has only graded the road once in three years."

Callais and Lorraine back up their claim that the road is public by pointing to an ordinance passed Oct. 9 by the Lafourche Parish Council, which classifies the road as public, effective Oct. 23.

Callais included with that ordinance three signed affidavits by parish workers who say they performed routine maintenance on the road for at least three years, nearly a quarter century ago.

Parish President Charlotte Randolph said the measure is nonetheless invalid.

In order for a private road to be seized, she said, the road maintenance must be performed for public use. All maintenance in this instance was solely for the privately owned pump station, she explained.

Only one private road has been changed to public under similar circumstances, Randolph said. That road, 135th Street in Golden Meadow, was regularly maintained and became public last year.

The property owners supported the roadís change from private to public, she added.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT

The pump station is one of six operated in lower Lafourche Parish by the South Lafourche Levee District. Four of those are accessed by partially or fully paved roads.

Workers travel to the pump stations twice a day during flooding and attend to the pumps bi-weekly at other times, according to Windell Curole, the levee districtís general manager. They primarily reach the pumps with trucks, but not all have four-wheel drive, he added.

"It is an advantage to us," said Curole. "The better the road, the easier to do our work."

However, Curole said he didnít asked for the road to be paved.

Callaisí proposal to pave the road was part of a package that initially included $1 million for a thoroughfare that would provide public access to the Leonard Miller Jr. Airport from La. 3235.

When the council passed the package, $900,000 was stripped from the planned airport road and $500,000 of that was shifted to Raphael Project Road. That left $100,000 for the airport road. The other $400,000 was returned to its source, the Road Sales Tax District 2 budget.

"Weíre disappointed because the airport will lose the economy connecting the airport from the four-lane to Port Fourchon," Randolph said. "(But) we do have some grants applied for it on state, national and federal levels. We can find the money again."

Randolph said she plans to ask, during a January meeting, that the money be stripped from the Raphael Project Road.

Lorraine, the co-sponsor of the proposal to pave the road, stands by the project, maintaining that the move makes sense for Lafourche Parish.

"Itís worth it," Lorraine said. "Weíll never have to bring any shells and maintain it."

That will be a hard sell for locals like Brian Cheramie, who lives near the yachtís berth.

"Once I got back there and they realized who I am, they would throw me out. Itís all private back there. Everybody knows that. Everybody down the street, yeah, we all know thatís private," Cheramie said. "If itís private itís no use to me what so ever, and Iím sure everyone in this town would feel the same way."

<p>GOLDEN MEADOW -- A three-mile stretch of gravel known as Raphael Project Road leads to a pump station, a privately owned 172-foot yacht and almost nothing else.</p><p>The public is barred from traveling on the road.</p><p>But the Lafourche Parish Council voted in December to spend $500,000 of taxpayer money to pave it.</p><p>Councilmen Brent Callais and Daniel Lorraine proposed the improvements. Callais has close ties to Gary Chouest, manager of Galliano Marine Service, which owns the yacht. The company is a sub-unit of maritime giant Edison Chouest Offshore, of which Gary Chouest is president. Callais, whose council term expired Monday, works as a consultant for the New Orleans Hornets, a basketball team partially owned by Chouest.</p><p>Callais denies the proposal is intended to help Chouest or any other individual. He said nobody asked for the road to be paved, but he wanted to provide improved access to the pump station.</p><p>"Gary Chouest is one landowner of about 200 who owns land back there. There are about 20 camps back there and all kinds of things," he said. "It’s not just going to one man’s road."</p><p>Several private camps and at least one house dot the levee neighboring the yacht’s berth, but Raphael Project Road ends at the private dock and all available accounts and maps indicate it does not continue to the camps.</p><p>Neither Chouest nor his company’s spokesman, Lonnie Thibodeaux, returned numerous phone calls requesting comment on the matter.</p><p>Local residents are keenly aware of the yacht’s location and say they are not permitted to the travel the road they are asked to pay for.</p><p>"I don’t want my tax money going on a paved road that I can’t go on, that’s common sense," said Brian Cheramie, who lives nearly in the shadow of Chouest’s yacht. "Especially these people -- these are millionaires. Even if they weren’t millionaires, it’s a private road and I don’t want my money on that road."</p><p>ŽPRIVATELY OWNED STREET’</p><p>A metal barrier blocks entrance to the road, east of La. 308, and posted signs indicating the land is private property are ample.</p><p>About two miles down the road is an ornate black gate adorned with an anchor displaying the yacht’s name, "Tranquility."</p><p>Callais and Lorraine contend, however, that the road is public.</p><p>Lafourche Parish District Attorney Cam Morvant says otherwise.</p><p>Last year Callais proposed installing lights on the road, but Morvant responded in a letter dated Jan. 3, 2007, that "based upon the information I have received regarding this matter, it is my understanding that Raphael Project Road is a privately owned street."</p><p>The owner of the road and its surrounding pasture is the Louisiana Land and Exploration Company, which granted a right of way for the South Lafourche Levee District, a non-government entity that owns the pump station, provided it maintains the road. A right of way allows an entity to travel on private property.</p><p>The agreement, from Dec. 14, 1995, states, "said road is and shall continue to be a private road."</p><p>According to state law, government can seize a private road as public without permission of the landowner if parish workers regularly maintain it for at least three years and other criteria are met.</p><p>However, Morvant said in his letter to Callais that "according to the parish public-works department, the parish does not maintain the road on a regular basis and has only graded the road once in three years."</p><p>Callais and Lorraine back up their claim that the road is public by pointing to an ordinance passed Oct. 9 by the Lafourche Parish Council, which classifies the road as public, effective Oct. 23.</p><p>Callais included with that ordinance three signed affidavits by parish workers who say they performed routine maintenance on the road for at least three years, nearly a quarter century ago.</p><p>Parish President Charlotte Randolph said the measure is nonetheless invalid.</p><p>In order for a private road to be seized, she said, the road maintenance must be performed for public use. All maintenance in this instance was solely for the privately owned pump station, she explained.</p><p>Only one private road has been changed to public under similar circumstances, Randolph said. That road, 135th Street in Golden Meadow, was regularly maintained and became public last year.</p><p>The property owners supported the road’s change from private to public, she added.</p><p>WHAT HAPPENS NEXT</p><p>The pump station is one of six operated in lower Lafourche Parish by the South Lafourche Levee District. Four of those are accessed by partially or fully paved roads.</p><p>Workers travel to the pump stations twice a day during flooding and attend to the pumps bi-weekly at other times, according to Windell Curole, the levee district’s general manager. They primarily reach the pumps with trucks, but not all have four-wheel drive, he added.</p><p>"It is an advantage to us," said Curole. "The better the road, the easier to do our work."</p><p>However, Curole said he didn’t asked for the road to be paved.</p><p>Callais’ proposal to pave the road was part of a package that initially included $1 million for a thoroughfare that would provide public access to the Leonard Miller Jr. Airport from La. 3235.</p><p>When the council passed the package, $900,000 was stripped from the planned airport road and $500,000 of that was shifted to Raphael Project Road. That left $100,000 for the airport road. The other $400,000 was returned to its source, the Road Sales Tax District 2 budget.</p><p>"We’re disappointed because the airport will lose the economy connecting the airport from the four-lane to Port Fourchon," Randolph said. "(But) we do have some grants applied for it on state, national and federal levels. We can find the money again."</p><p>Randolph said she plans to ask, during a January meeting, that the money be stripped from the Raphael Project Road.</p><p>Lorraine, the co-sponsor of the proposal to pave the road, stands by the project, maintaining that the move makes sense for Lafourche Parish.</p><p>"It’s worth it," Lorraine said. "We’ll never have to bring any shells and maintain it."</p><p>That will be a hard sell for locals like Brian Cheramie, who lives near the yacht’s berth.</p><p>"Once I got back there and they realized who I am, they would throw me out. It’s all private back there. Everybody knows that. Everybody down the street, yeah, we all know that’s private," Cheramie said. "If it’s private it’s no use to me what so ever, and I’m sure everyone in this town would feel the same way."</p>